2004 Annual Reports for Boards and Committees

Board of Educational Affairs (BEA) 2004 Annual Report

Board of Educational Affairs: Jonathan Sandoval, PhD (Chair); Asuncion Miteria Austria, PhD; Mary Brabeck, PhD; Cindy Carlson, PhD; Cynthia de las Fuentes, PhD; Emmanuel Donchin, PhD; Louise Douce, PhD; Nadya Fouad, PhD; Justin (Doug) McDonald, PhD; Wilbert McKeachie, PhD; Nathan Perry, PhD; Charles Spielberger, PhD.

Staff Liaison: Robert Walsh and Luis Espinoza.

The Board of Educational Affairs (BEA) addresses broad issues that encompass all levels of education from pre-K to continuing professional education. This report provides information on some of BEA's major activities in 2004.

Guidelines for Education and Training in Psychology

The BEA reviewed the document, Guidelines for Education and Training at the Doctoral and Postdoctoral Level in Consulting Psychology/Organizational Consulting Psychology, developed by the Society of Consulting Psychology (APA Division 13). The purpose of the document is to provide guidance for psychologists teaching or planning curricula at doctoral or postdoctoral levels of education and training in consulting psychology/organizational consulting psychology. The document was distributed and reviewed by APA governance, divisions, state affiliated associations and external education and credentialing groups in psychology during the 2004 Fall board and committee meetings. BEA forwarded the final document to the APA Board of Directors in December 2004, requesting that the Board forward the document to the Council of Representatives in February 2005 for adoption as APA policy.

Application of Psychology to Education

The BEA Working Group for the Application of Psychology to Education provides advice and guidance for activities of the Center for Psychology in Schools and Education (CPSE).

The BEA Working Group is represented in the Coalition for Psychology in the Schools, a group with representatives from the various APA Divisions and psychology groups with a stake in psychology's role in general education, staffed by CPSE. The Coalition has grown to include representatives from 13 divisions, Psychology Teachers at the Community Colleges (PT@CC), Committee of Teachers of Psychology at Secondary Schools (TOPSS), Council of Representatives' Child and Adolescent Caucus, Committee on Ethnic Minority Affairs (CEMA), Committee on Psychological Testing and Assessment (CPTA), and the APA Board of Educational Affairs (BEA).   

The BEA Working group promotes CPSE's development of professional development courses in assessment, classroom management, and differentiating instruction. The assessment course, the first in the series, is in the process of development under the leadership of James Royer from Division 15. 

Undergraduate Level Education

BEA supported the development of the Psychology Department Program and the Psychology Undergraduate Education database.

In addition, the BEA Undergraduate Working Group convened discussions to consider potential new business items for BEA.  Working group members suggested the following topics:  building a stronger partnership with the McNair programs as a mechanism for strengthening the pipeline of minority psychologists; expanding the PFF program; conducting a Work Force analysis to address undergraduate degree options; proposing an APA Division of Departments of Psychology with a seat on the APA Council of Representatives (CoR); offering APA workshops and resource guides for psychology department chairs; proposing discounts on library subscriptions for PsycINFO; and recommending development of bilingual psychology programs.

The 2004 Education Leadership Conference

The 2004 Education Leadership Conference (ELC): Applying Psychological Science to Education in Psychology was held on September 10-13, 2004 in Washington, DC and brought together 131 participants representing 24 independent organizations, 28 APA divisions, and 12 APA governance groups with commitments to education and training in psychology. A major focus of the conference was to evaluate how psychology might effectively apply its scientific knowledge base to the education and training of future psychologists and the teaching of psychology at all levels. The conference culminated with visits to Capitol Hill during which conference participants and members of APA's Federal Education Advocacy Coordinators (FEDAC) Network met with legislatures to promote education legislative initiatives. More information on the 2004 ELC is available at http://www.apa.org/ed/elc/elc04_homepage.html.

BEA Advisory Council on Accreditation

The BEA Advisory Council on Accreditation's purpose was to review the composition of the Committee on Accreditation (CoA) and make recommendations to the BEA regarding (a) how that structure (i.e., composition) may require change given the current state of education and training in psychology, and (b) the frequency of future reviews of CoA composition and how such reviews should be structured.

The Advisory Council presented its Interim Report at the March 2004 BEA meeting, and convened a “town hall” forum during the APA 2004 Convention and Education Leadership Conference, during which additional comments on its March 2004 report were sought from individuals and organizations in attendance. The Advisory Council submitted its final report to the BEA at the BEA Fall 2004 meeting. The report reflected the final deliberations and recommendations related to the charge of the Advisory Council. BEA accepted the Advisory Council Report and discharged the Advisory Council with appreciation for its work.

The Advisory Council's recommendations related to this charge were forwarded by BEA to the CoA for further discussion related to their implementation with communities of interest. The CoA plans to hold a summit meeting of such communities in 2005.

BEA Award for Innovative Practices in Graduate Education and Training

The BEA, in collaboration with the Council of Graduate Departments of Psychology (COGDOP), reviewed 21 nominations for the annual award that is presented to graduate departments of psychology that excelled in the use of innovative practices in graduate education. In 2004, the committee awarded top honors to the Department of Psychology at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, and the Department of Psychology at the University of Toronto. In addition, the committee awarded honorable mention to the Department of Psychology at the University of Hawaii.

BEA Task Force on Workforce Analysis in Education and Training

The BEA Task Force on Workforce Analysis in Education and Training reviewed the history of workforce related issues in psychology, definitional and impact issues related to workforce analysis, and psychology's current knowledge and needs for knowledge related to projections of supply and demand of psychologists in the workforce. Their report included recommendations for outlining and conducting a workforce analysis in psychology study. The Task Force membership included representation from the BEA, the Board of Professional Affairs (BPA), the Board for the Advancement of Psychology in the Public Interest (BAPPI), the Board of Scientific Affairs (BSA), and two external consultants with expertise in conducting workforce analysis.

BEA received the Task Force report at the Fall 2004 meeting, discharged the Task Force with appreciation for its work, and forwarded to the Board of Directors (BoD) recommendations to appoint a study panel to develop an action plan for a workforce analysis in psychology consistent with the Task Force's recommendations. The study panel would consist of representatives from the education, science, practice, and public interest communities.

BEA Block Grant Awards in Undergraduate and Graduate Education

The BEA Undergraduate Working Group reviewed proposals and recommended funding to provide support for six precollege and undergraduate teaching conferences.

In addition, the BEA awarded eight (8) block grants to support small conferences and workshops that advance the quality of graduate and postgraduate education and training. Awards went to the following departments of psychology and organizations planning conferences and workshops intended to enhance the quality of graduate and postgraduate education and training: Alliant International University, Gallaudet University, Pennsylvania State University, University of California at Santa Barbara, University of Maine, University of Wisconsin at Madison, Association of Counseling Center Training Agencies, and the Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers.

BEA Task Force on Assessment of Competencies in Professional Education and Training

In February 2004, with support of the Board of Directors, the Board of Educational Affairs (BEA) requested and received funding from the Council of Representatives (CoR) 2004 discretionary fund to support the establishment of a task force on the assessment of competencies in professional education and training. The focus of the Task Force is to review current practices of competency assessment, synthesize the literature in psychology and selected other professions, analyze policy issues, and make recommendations regarding models for the assessment of competencies developmentally in professional education and training in psychology. This work will include an analysis of issues related to ethics and diversity, and will reflect the developmental stages of professional education and training in psychology.

Task Force membership includes representatives from the BEA, Board of Professional Affairs (BPA), Board of Scientific Affairs (BSA), Board for the Advancement of Psychology in the Public Interest (BAPPI), and the Committee for the Advancement of Professional Practice (CAPP). In addition, two members-at-large were appointed with expertise in models of measurement and assessment used in other professions or otherwise outside the context of professional education, training, and credentialing in psychology. The Task Force met for a 2.5 day meeting in October 2004, and will meet in 2005, before issuing a final report to the BEA in 2005.

BEA Task Force on Education and Training in Proficiencies

The BEA Task Force on Education and Training in Proficiencies, appointed in July 2004, is comprised of seven members with representation from the BEA, Committee for the Advancement of Professional Practice (CAPP), the Board of Professional Affairs (BPA), the Board of Scientific Affairs (BSA), the Board for the Advancement of Psychology in the Public Interest (BAPPI), the Continuing Professional Education Committee (CPEC), and the Commission on the Recognition of Specialties and Proficiencies in Professional Psychology (CRSPPP).

The Task Force is to discuss and develop for the BEA recommendations on methods or models by which the APA might establish a quality assurance program for the assessment of continuing professional education and training programs designed to achieve competence in recognized proficiencies of practice or areas of similar nature. In 2004, the Task Force conducted its business electronically and will meet in 2005. The product of the Task Force will be a report to be submitted to the BEA in 2005.